Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) Trading 17.4% Higher - Still a Buy?

Shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR - Get Free Report) shot up 17.4% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $11.46 and last traded at $11.73. 1,779,032 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 29% from the average session volume of 1,382,867 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on ARWR shares. B. Riley reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $38.00 target price (down from $51.00) on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Chardan Capital reissued a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $41.44.

Remove Ads

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 4.7 %

The business's fifty day moving average is $15.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.39 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 6.09, a current ratio of 6.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.27.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.39) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by ($0.97). Equities analysts forecast that Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher Richard Anzalone sold 133,333 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.02, for a total value of $2,269,327.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,773,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,230,110.04. This trade represents a 3.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 276,839 shares of company stock valued at $4,054,176 in the last three months. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of ARWR. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,978 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 1,250 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 45.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,224 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 1,644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $137,000. 62.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc develops medicines for the treatment of intractable diseases in the United States. The company's products in pipeline includes Plozasiran, which is in Phase 2b and one Phase 3 clinical trial to treat hypertriglyceridemia, mixed dyslipidemia, and chylomicronemia syndrome; Zodasiran that is in Phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of dyslipidemia and hypertriglyceridemia; ARO-PNPLA3, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial to treat patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; ARO-RAGE that is in Phase 1/2a clinical trial to treat inflammatory pulmonary conditions; and ARO-MUC5AC, which is in Phase 1/2a clinical trial to treat muco-obstructive pulmonary diseases.